A touch panel superposed on a screen is known. This touch panel detects a contact position on the screen which is contacted by a finger or the like. An apparatus displays a button and the like on the screen and recognizes the button touched by a user based on the contact position of the finger detected by the touch panel.
Touch panels such as an electrostatic sensor or a pressure sensor have been used. Recently, touch panels employing an optical sensor have become widespread in consideration of cost or ease of installation. The touch panel employing the optical sensor includes an infrared emitting/receiving unit at both ends of an upper edge of the screen. The infrared emitting/receiving unit applies a fan-shaped light beam of infrared rays in parallel to and downward obliquely about the screen. The touch panel receives the infrared rays reflected from an object on the screen by the use of the infrared emitting/receiving unit and detects the position of the object on the screen. When this optical touch panel is used, a reflecting plate vertically upstanding from the screen is disposed, for example, in both left and right edges and a lower edge. The reflecting plates reflect the infrared rays applied from the infrared emitting/receiving unit. On the other hand, a space is provided in the upper edge of the screen so as not to carelessly reflect the infrared rays.
An image display panel is assembled into an electronic apparatus or an image display apparatus. When the image display panel is assembled into such apparatuses, the circumferential edge thereof is fixed to a frame-like front cover surrounding the circumferential edge of the front surface of the image display panel. The rear surface of the image display panel is covered with a rear cover extending on the rear side of the image display panel. When the image display panel is mounted on the front cover, both the left and right edges and the lower edge of the image display panel may be supported by the front cover. On the other hand, the upper edge of the image display panel is separated from the front cover, since, as described above, a space is provided therein. That is, the front cover has a beam structure in which typically both the left and right ends of the portion facing the upper edge of the image display panel are fixed. Accordingly, the strength of the front cover is not sufficient or a rippled or swollen part in the appearance is visible, whereby the apparatus may decrease in quality as a product. As a countermeasure thereof, a known technique of disposing a rib to provide the strength is employed, because sufficient space is desired so as not to block the field of view of the infrared emitting/receiving unit. Additionally, a technique of increasing the thickness of the front cover to provide the strength is employed, because the weight of the apparatus greatly increases to acquire the satisfactory strength.
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-221200 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 1-187626 disclose a method of attaching a touch panel to the front surface of a display, but do not disclose the above-mentioned countermeasures.